sparks

Doyle wrote a piece in the IndyStar today which is pretty good actually...and he cited Butler and how both NIL and transfer portal is impacting the program which is all to similar to ours...


Butler is down, players are out, and NIL makes it harder than ever
A few words about Butler, because the Bulldogs matter, even if they do have to leave the Big East eventually.

One way or another, the day's approaching when Butler takes a step back in competition. Could be the coming earthquake to college athletics, finally shaking loose the small private schools from the enormous public powerhouses. Could happen sooner, when Butler finally acknowledges – through no fault of its own – that it isn’t playing on anything close to a level field in the NIL era.


That might not be the truth – it could be wrong – but it’s what I truly believe.

Having said that, what happened at Butler this season was frightening. Proof coming, in two sentences:

From 2014-22, its first nine years in Big East regular-season play, Butler lost by 20-plus points seven times.
This year, under Matta, Butler lost by 20-plus points eight times in the first 12 games.
Terrifying.

What has happened since, in the transfer portal, isn’t frightening, just predictable. Of course players would leave after (A) a terrible season (B) under a coach who didn’t recruit them (C) after seeing just how steep the climb ahead will be. Five Bulldogs players are in the transfer portal, and most had put their names in there before the towels from their final postgame shower were even dry.

Dawgs Insider: Four transfers in two days ... inside Butler's exodus


Almost everyone wants out.

Does anyone want in? And is this version of Thad Matta the one to get them here?

Matta has an amazing track record and a better personality, which is why I was so thoroughly thrilled when Butler hired him last year. But he’d been out of coaching six years for a reason – exhaustion, mainly – and now it’s fair to wonder if he’ll ever be the Thad Matta who won, and won big from 2000-16 at Butler, Xavier and Ohio State.

This is the worst season of Matta’s career, he’s nearly 20 years removed from the Greg Oden-Michael Conley Jr. recruiting class that solidified his spot as an elite coach, and the NIL reality of college basketball in 2023 is just more wind in Butler’s face.

Think you’re unhappy to read that? Imagine how it felt to write it, as someone who’s fond of every single person I know at Butler. It’s crushing.

I was about to rip you and call you a Bulldawg Ball sniffer.  😂

For those who think Sparks cannot play at a P5 school you are mistaken, IMHO.  He likely won’t be dominant or maybe even start, depending on where he goes, but he can be a rotation player on a team that goes to the Dance.  He’s strong, works hard, very smart, decent athleticism, doesn’t complain and is a great teammate.  He’s 6-9 and 240.  He has 22 double doubles in two seasons.  

I’m disappointed he is leaving and I still think he’s a sure bet HOF if he stayed but just like Steele, if a kid gets the chance to play in a full arena every game at the pinnacle level of their sport who can blame them.  Not me. 

Not a real good defender, but had to avoid fouls as main man here.

53% from the line disagrees.

Agree, needs a game away from the basket. With his size, if he could develop that, he's a legit player. 

Agree with you.  He will have a very special career if he stays at BSU as this is the right D-I level for him.  I'll add that when he first signed at BSU there were several posters who saw him play in H.S. and said he was at best a project & would need to red-shirt his first year.  Young man was driven enough to go from 290-300 lbs. down to 240 lbs.  In addition, he worked on his hoops skills and, as we know, was named MAC Freshman of the Year.  Pretty good transformation/improvement in one year.  I think if he goes to the right place, they will continue to skill him up this summer.